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“Come on! Pull! Do it! I know you want it!”“I don't know, I was supposed to save this version.”“If you're wondering whether you should pull, that means you definitely should! Don't even think about it, just zero those primos!”“Ok, I'm pulling. Yolo!”A faerie of colors flashed on the screen and Stelle couldn't help but jump up when they turned into bright gold. The gamba Aeons were watching after her, after all. Silver Wolf snickered. When it came to gacha she was always right.Well, almost always. As Stelle clicked through the pulls, the five star revealed itself. But instead of C6 Zhongli, it was a C11 Qiqi. With a groan, the girl threw her phone into the pillows.“Condolences, traveler.” Silver Wolf comforted her playmate, knowing the pain all too well. “But hey, at least you have guaranteed Citlali, so it's actually good.”“Yeah? With what primos? That was my last ten pull. I'm never getting enough for her and Mavuika,” Stelle lamented. The game was wiped clean from all the treasure chests for a good while.“Just get them early, EZ Clap. Or you can play the most powerful card in the game.”Sadly, that option was closed off to Stelle as well. Her debit card was wiped clean, and the payday was two weeks away. In her defence, Goldenglow went back on banners, so she needed to go back to AK. And since there were so many cute skins as well… she made the only sound decision.“Not this time, I'm broke, and I still gotta buy instant ramens to survive till the end of the month,” she sighed.“Bummer. You know version 5.3 is gonna be the best in a while. You also wanted some cons on Shenhe, the sexy-demure Hu Tao skin, and you’ve seen the leaks for the future patches. And didn't your fave in League get a new legendary skin or something? The e-girl one?” Though Silver Wolf had League in highest contempt, she could tolerate it for Stelle. Barely.Oh yeah, that happened. Stelle was raving about the skin ever since it dropped on PBE. “Shit, I forgot. Why is it always when I'm strapped for cash when all the good stuff releases?”“That's how those companies get you. Guess it's time to sell your feet pics,” Silver Wolf suggested. Stelle's eyes darkened, because she knew very well her friend was not actually joking.She knew that Silver Wolf had some odd ways to supplement her gaming funds, even if she never really asked in depth. And it wasn't like she hasn't made some less than moral deals to fuel her collections, but there were boundaries that even she was scared to cross.“Ew, gross. Not even Seraphine is worth some weirdo gooning to my toes.” She said that, but she would lie if she said she didn't consider it.“My offer still stands, I could find the buyers, y'know,” Silver Wolf offered, but didn't intend to pursue it further. “There's only so many ways I can simulate footjobing a monster can, thought I could get some fresh material. Whatcha gonna do then? Beg Siobhan for extra hours?”“Extra hours at a bar?” Stelle scoffed. “We're already open till 4am and no one comes during the day. Guess I gotta find a quick side gig or something.”“At that short a notice, maybe as a pornstar for hire. Although maybe someone'd let you be a guard or some shit.” Silver Wolf mused. “Wanna quickie before bed. I still have resin to spend.”“Thanks, but I'm leaving in five mins. Don't suck too much without me.”“Bitch, you know I carry you. Cya later.”And with that, Stelle disconnected from the call. She had a blast with Wolfie, as always, but her words stuck with her. What exactly was she gonna do about her finances? Gacha was a fickle mistress and she knew, just because she wanted her waifus so much she would definitely get slapped with hard pity. And that was not even considering the weapon banners.Well, that could wait. She didn’t want to get her ass kicked by Siobhan for being late. Again.***“Come on, a cutie like that is wasted on pouring beer. Go with me and I’ll make sure your pretty voice is heard by everyone.”Fucking creeps.Dealing with asshats like that was not uncommon for a bartender, it was just painfully annoying at times. Stelle wished she could just punch their noses in, but most she could do is tell them off. For shame, guys like those rarely listened to words.“Severely doubt it. Card or cash?” she replied dryly, hoping this time the idiot would take a hint. He didn't.“How about I let my good friend Willy do the paying, eh? Bet you haven't got a good pounding in a while.”Stelle's fingers tightened around the cold vodka bottle. She contemplated if the assault charges would be worth it, with the answer leaning towards a huge ‘yes’. Thankfully, before Stelle could act out, a strong arm grabbed the unruly client's shoulder.“Sonny, you got any problems?” a burly voice got the client's attention.The angry drunk turned, only for all of his bravado to vanish once he saw a scruffy man towering over him. From the attire he deduced it was one of the bartenders, this one much less flirt friendly.“O-oi, is that how you t-treat you customers? Huh!?” the dude postured aggressively, but was quickly sat down by firm arms. Gallagher was patient, but not that patient.“Customers pay. So pay or get lost,” he growled. The client decided to comply, and went away with his drink, muttering obscenities. Stelle let out a heavy sigh.“Thanks, Gallaguy. I'd have wasted a bottle of good Finland, if you didn't come.” She felt much more secure, now that her colleague was here.“Leave the bottles alone, throw the glasses if you must,” Gallagher replied, lighting a cig. “Tough day?”“Only the fourth problem child of the day. We’ve had worse. Soulglad on the rocks?” she offered, sliding a glass onto the counter.“As always, with a shot of gin.” Gallagher nodded. Today was his off day after all. Stelle began mixing, almost on autopilot. This recipe she could do blindfolded.“I've talked with Siobhan about the thing you said. You may be disappointed with the answer,” he continued, taking the drink in the hand. Bitter and refreshing, just like he liked.“No extra hours, then,” Stelle sighed, dejected. She didn't expect much, but it was worth a try.“Nope, unless you invent a new day of the week. Why do you even need extra cash? Got a girlfriend or something?”A girlfriend would be nice, but Stelle has not been active in the dating scene for a while now. She jokingly punched Gallagher, laughing off the suggestion.“Let's say I'll have a tough month ahead,” she searched for the most vague explanation possible. Gallagher did not pursue, everyone had their shit and he was way too old to meddle in.“If this is any consolation, you're free to search for anything part-time, so long as it doesn't conflict with your hours here. Siobhan and I can cover for you if need be,” he offered, and though small consolation it was, Stelle took it. She let the man finish the drink, and then vanish into the backdoors.A part time job would not be so bad. She usually slept in till late because of her working hours, but she could possibly slot in a half-shift here or there. That is, if she could find something that wouldn't bore her out of her mind.She took out her phone and in the period of downtime at the bar searched through the offers. She saw a few openings for logistic centers, which she promptly ignored, because she was not coming back into that hellhole. Seven elevens, giving out flyers, even dressing as a raccoon mascot. Mind numbing, but it would be all for the greater good - the gacha pulls.On a whim, she looked up how much the feet pics were going for. While not exactly much, it was disgustingly too much. The things perverts would do to satisfy their fetishes. Scrolling through offers, some normal, many less so, an idea bloomed in her mind.Quickly clearing out the queue of already halfway wasted customers, she looked up another thing. How much a prostitute was paid by the hour, to be exact. The idea of sex work was mostly neutral to her, and she did have sex a lot in her life. Coupled with the fact that she didn't exactly get much action recently, crazy though it sounded, maybe it was a way to connect the pleasant with the useful.Well, it wasn't exactly like she wanted to become a professional prostitute. Just a quick side gig, in and out, for Mavuika and the rest of her wishlist. It wouldn't be the weirdest thing she did for gacha, not even by a long shot. After that, she'd just forget about the ordeal, and save up like a normal player. Probably.While scrolling through the offers that definitely didn't qualify as safe for work, she failed to notice Siobhan coming up behind her. Until Siobhan forced her to notice, by smacking her on the head.“You know, for someone that wanted the extra hours, you sure slack off a lot today.” Stelle turned around, massaging her scalp. Her boss was not exactly amused.“I'm working, see? No unattended clients,” she defended herself, weak as it may have been.“And that is why instead of cleaning glasses you're scrolling through- was that sex offers?” Ah, shit.Stelle was frantically thinking of a suitable excuse, but was there any? She was caught red handed, and there was no good way to explain researching viability of sex work during her shift.“Stelle, I'm definitely not giving you extra hours so you can order a lap dance,” Siobhan warned, shaking her head in disappointment.Oh yeah, that was a much better explanation. Embarrassing, but she'd rather her boss saw her as a client rather than performer. Probably.“Easy for you to say, you have a hot wife and were always a chick magnet. Anyone magnet, really,” she feigned frustration. Which wasn't exactly hard, her dry spell had lasted for weeks at this point and there were moments where she got genuinely restless.Siobhan's expression softened. Though she and Stelle had a strictly professional relationship, she couldn't help but have a soft spot for the younger girl.“Come on, surely you're not that desperate. You're an objectively lovely young woman, who's definitely going to find someone to call her own,” she encouraged.“Yeah, so far I'm mostly pulling drunk sex pests. Where's all the cuties in this bar that are also single?” Stelle theatrically scowled. And Siobhan just as theatrically took affront.“So it's my fault for not getting enough flirtable clients in? How greedy of you.”Siobhan affectionately ruffled the girl's hair. Which was somewhat adorable, considering Stelle was taller than her. They bantered through the shift, as the crowds got progressively more tired and dispersed. As they closed out for the night, Siobhan took a few minutes to wait with Stelle for the night bus.“I know it feels bad when you feel lonely in the night, but I believe in you, kiddo. You're smart, dedicated and undeniably charming. You just need an occasion to show it off,” she encouraged her junior, as the bus pulled up. “Take care.”Stelle felt warm radiance spread through her chest. Strangely, getting praised by her boss was one of her weaknesses. She truly appreciated her almost sisterly encouragement. And she was sure it would help when she went back on the dating scene.For now, she had to check how much you paid for a night with a prostitute.***The research took Stelle into some interesting places. All for the greater good, of course. Watching the live performances through burner accounts was just a bonus.She had a few conclusions. First of all, holy hell was she pent up. She expected it considering she was watching a form of pornography after not touching another sentient being sexually for weeks, but she underestimated the severity. She had to let the vibrator's batteries die twice, before she was able to concentrate on the actual research.And that brought her to a second conclusion, sex work seemed fun. Perhaps that should have been shocking to her, but what shocked her more was how okay she was with that fact. When imaging herself as a performer, she not only felt content with the idea, she was almost excited. She wrote down a lengthy list of pros and cons from the forums and AMAs on Reddit, and when she looked at the columns, the pros won out with a healthy lead.But fun was not the point. All of this was so she could get some cash, and if the cash wasn't cashing, then what was the point? Well, it turned out there was a point. Hourly rates were many times higher than her wage, even for the lower end offers. And that was the floor, the prices could climb depending on the performer to frankly absurd levels.Naturally, Stelle had no brand and no prior experience, so getting out there would possibly be a challenge, but even with low pricing, after a few sessions it would be enough at least for Hu Tao's skin. Which would satisfy her enough, but while researching, she came to one final conclusion.Doing this alone would be hard, the clients may have never come in the first place and it was probably just a bit unsanitary and unsafe. Doing it with others, however, was a different story. There were plenty of agencies offering the services of their performers, providing ready to use premises, health insurance, marketing and fancy websites. So basically, all the stuff Stelle was not really caring about and couldn't be bothered with, which means getting into a sex work agency was her ticket to trying this out for real.And the way she got to that conclusion was by stumbling upon a job offering for a position of ‘freelance adult services performer’, from the agency that was, as of now, right in front of her.The 'Star Rail - Erotic Services Agency LLC.' (whatever that meant), or just Star Rail, because Stelle couldn't be bothered to remember the full name. The listing was specifically looking for a female performers with two years of experience with servicing clients, and though they surely didn't mean bartending by the ‘servicing’, Stelle hoped that detail would not come up in the interview. Which was about to happen in the next 15 minutes.Frankly, Stelle was shocked she was accepted. She sent an email with a query, fully expecting to have to search for yet another opening elsewhere. Within an hour, the reply came, scheduling an in person interview for the next day. Sure, she may or may not have colorized a few facts when- Okay, maybe it wasn't that shocking they wanted to know more after all.Well, no time like the present, Stelle hyped herself up. It wasn't her first job interview and she spent the entire night preparing for every question she could think of. She was ready. Probably.After a small bathroom break.